Genocide and the Burden of History

Does Benjamin Netanyahu need Hamas — and even this war —for political survival?  This week on Identity/Crisis, following Israel’s puzzling strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar, Yehuda Kurtzer and Michael Koplow, Chief Policy Officer at Israel Policy Forum, try to get inside Netanyahu’s head and understand the ways in which he and Hamas may be inextricably linked. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

What does it mean to reclaim the Jewish story in an era of shame, assimilation, and contested narratives? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, host Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with author Sarah Hurwitz about her new book, As a Jew, her journey from superficial Jewish identity to deeper engagement with Jewish tradition, and why knowledge and countercultural courage may be key to Jewish continuity today. You can listen to more from Sarah Hurwitz on Ark Media's Call Me Back podcast HERE If you loved listening to Sarah Hurwitz and want to find out which books shaped her Jewish identity, you can listen to Sarah on The Five Books Podcast. You can also check out Yehuda's guest episode! Spoiler alert: Yehuda and Sarah were shaped by one of the same books, tune in to find out which one… Learn more about the Hartman Teen Fellowship ⁠⁠HERE.⁠⁠ You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click ⁠⁠HERE⁠⁠ to learn more. ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS ⁠

Who gets to decide someone’s Jewish status, and what happens when that status comes into conflict with someone’s identity? This week on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Christine Hayes, Sterling Professor Emerita of Religious Studies at Yale and Hartman Senior Fellow for a provocative conversation about intermarriage, Jewish adjacency, and the boundaries of community and belonging. Check out Yehuda’s substack HERE Learn more about Hartman’s Hevruta Gap-Year Program HERE Learn more about the Edward Fein Winter Student Seminar HERE You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

This episode was originally released on April 1, 2025 The future of American Judaism is uncertain, some even might say at risk. In this special episode, recorded live at the Jewish Funders Network Conference in Nashville, Yehuda Kurtzer, Franklin Foer, and Sarah Hurwitz engage in a dynamic discussion about what ails American Judaism, why we fear change, and what we want to strengthen and preserve for the future.    You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

This week, Identity/Crisis is excited to share Hartman’s newest podcast, Future Tense, where rising Jewish leaders drive conversations with scholars from the Shalom Hartman Institute on the most pressing issues facing their generation.   What kind of Jewish future do we want to build – and how do we build something that will last? On this episode of Future Tense, hosts Anna Weiss, Sami Jinich, and Yadid Orlow reflect on their upbringings and share their visions for Jewish life. Together with Yehuda Kurtzer, they explore how values are transmitted and imagine different versions of the Jewish future that they want to create. Learn more about Future Tense here. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

What happens to the credibility and power of scholarship when practitioners abandon careful methodology in favor of rhetorical certainty? In this special episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer explores the intellectual and ethical responsibilities of scholarship in the face of the Gaza war and asks: how can we confront a horror and feel it deeply, yet stop short of giving that horror a name? You can read Barry Wimpfheimer's Sources article HERE You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

What can Jewish summer camps teach us about building stronger, more inclusive Jewish communities? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, guest host and editor of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas, Claire Sufrin, sits down with Adina Frydman, CEO of Young Judaea Global, to explore how Jewish camps create spaces where North American and Israeli campers live, learn, and wrestle with complex identities together. Together they discuss bridging cultural divides, navigating political tensions, and fostering belonging while holding space for difference. Find the digital version of the summer 2025 issue of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas HERE JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

What does it mean to be “okay” when your community is not? What is the role of an educator in times of moral emergency? And how can we resist turning loyalty into a litmus test for empathy? In this far-reaching and emotionally charged conversation recorded live in Jerusalem, Yehuda Kurtzer and Donniel Hartman reflect on what it means to lead the Hartman Institute in a moment of profound trauma. For the latest issue of our award-winning winning journal Sources, click HERE You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

Who should we trust when the truth is unknowable? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Times of Israel founding editor David Horovitz for a candid conversation about journalistic integrity, media bias, and the urgent need for honest storytelling in a time of global confusion. Listen to our new podcast, Future Tense, HERE Listen to a new special season of TEXTing: IRL HERE Learn more about our regional programming HERE You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

What does it mean to build a culture of argument that strengthens rather than weakens us? As Jews around the world mark the somber weeks between the 17 Tammuz and Tisha B’Av — a period our tradition links to the breakdown of social trust and the dangers of baseless hatred — Identity/Crisis turns to what it means to disagree constructively. Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with former Israeli ambassador and author Daniel Taub to explore his new book and the deep Jewish roots of better arguments. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS